Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Why La-Z-Boy (LZB) Is Tanking After Hours

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- La-Z-Boy (LZB) is tanking in aftermarket trading after reporting third-quarter earnings and revenue lower than analyst consensus.

After the bell, shares took off 9.6% to $24.50 after closing the regular session 1.2% lower.

The furniture maker, known for its trademark reclining sofa chairs, recorded per-share earnings of 32 cents in the three months to January. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected net income of 35 cents a share.

Revenue of $350.4 million fell short of consensus of $378.74 million, but were up 3% on the year-ago quarter if results excluded Bauhaus, a discontinued operation in La-Z-Boy's upholstery segment. "Weather conditions did have some impact on sales, production and deliveries," said CEO Kurt L. Darrow in a statement. "While markets in the northeast and Midwest were challenged during the period, written sales in warmer climates and in those markets not impacted by severe weather conditions continued to exhibit strength." Same-store written sales for the company's Furniture Galleries store network increased 3.6% but came in far lower than the 11.8% increase in the third quarter 2013. Must Read: La-Z-Boy Signs Agreement to Sell Bauhaus USA TheStreet Ratings team rates LA-Z-BOY INC as a Buy with a ratings score of A. The team has this to say about their recommendation: "We rate LA-Z-BOY INC (LZB) a BUY. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its compelling growth in net income, revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, solid stock price performance and good cash flow from operations. Although no company is perfect, currently we do not see any significant weaknesses which are likely to detract from the generally positive outlook." You can view the full analysis from the report here: LZB Ratings Report